Free · One day
Contractor Bootcamp
A free day on the business side of a trade. Licensing and certifications, what to charge, where the money actually goes, who you can afford to hire, and how to keep the customers you win — taught by the people who do it for a living.
One day on the business, not the work
You already know how to do the work. This is the other half of it — the licensing, the pricing, the cash flow and the customers. One day at the Livingston-Overton County Chamber of Commerce, 222 E Main St, Livingston, TN 38570. Doors at 8:30am for coffee, the program runs 9:00am – 3:00pm. It costs nothing and lunch is included.
Who it is for
Electricians, plumbers, builders, HVAC, and anyone else running the business as well as doing the work. Whether you have been licensed for years or are still deciding whether to go out on your own.
What is included
- The whole day, free
- Coffee and a light breakfast
- A catered lunch
- Six sessions — three on the business, three on the trade
- People in the room who do this for a living
What it costs
Nothing. It is put on with the Chamber and two colleges, and paid for so that a day away from the van does not also cost you a fee.
What it covers
- Any business01
Working on it, not in it
You have opened a business — now what. The shift from being the person doing every job to being the person running the thing. It opens the day because it is the frame the rest of the morning hangs on.
- Any business02
Value proposition and customer discovery
What problem are you actually solving, what makes you different from the outfit bidding against you, and who is your customer. Most trades can do the work; the ones who stay busy can answer these three.
- Any business03
Customers and professionalism
Communication, trust, and how you look online. Most trades lose work for reasons that have nothing to do with the quality of the work.
- Contractor specific04
Financial basics for contractors
Cash flow, profit, invoicing and quoting, and pricing a job so it is still profitable when it runs long. Written for work that gets bid, not for a shop with a till.
- Contractor specific05
Hiring good help
Employee or subcontractor, and what that choice actually commits you to — the classification, the paperwork, and the whole insurance conversation that comes with putting somebody else on your job.
- Contractor specific06
Licensing and certifications
Contractor licenses, the certifications worth holding, and the OSHA safety requirements that come with them — what applies to you at your size, and what happens if it does not get done.
How the day runs
Morning
Any businessThe business underneath any business — who you are for, how you are found, and how you stop being the bottleneck. None of it is specific to a trade, and all of it decides whether the trade pays.
- 8:30
Doors and breakfast
Check in, coffee, a light breakfast, and a chance to meet the room before anyone stands up to talk.
- 9:00
Welcome
What the day is for and how it runs.
- 9:15Session 1
Working on it, not in it
You have opened a business — now what. Getting out from under being the person who does every job personally.
- 10:00Session 2
Value proposition and customer discovery
What problem you solve, what makes you different from whoever else is bidding, and who your customer actually is. Most people can do the work — the ones who stay busy can answer these three.
- 10:45
Break
Fifteen minutes. Coffee, phone calls, back at eleven.
- 11:00Session 3
Customers and professionalism
How you communicate, how you handle it when a job goes sideways, and what somebody sees when they look you up. Most work is lost for reasons that have nothing to do with the quality of the work.
Catered lunch, included
The hour people tell us afterwards was the most useful one. It is also the line in the day: the morning is business, the afternoon is the trade.
After lunch
Contractor specificThe same thinking, aimed straight at contracting. Money on bid work, putting somebody else on your job, and the licensing and safety side that carries a real bill when it is wrong.
- 12:45Session 4
Financial basics for contractors
Cash flow, profit, invoicing and quoting, and how to price a job so it is still profitable when it runs long.
- 1:30Session 5
Hiring good help
Employee or subcontractor, and what that choice commits you to — the classification, the paperwork, and the whole insurance conversation that comes with putting somebody else on your job.
- 2:15Session 6
Licensing and certifications
Which license applies at your size, which certifications are worth holding, and the OSHA safety requirements that come with the work — plus what it costs you when none of it gets done.
That is the shape of the day rather than a promise to the minute. The break is real, the lunch is real, and it finishes at three so you can still get somewhere afterwards.
Who teaches it
The morning is taught in-house. The afternoon sessions go to people who do this work for a living, and those names are still being confirmed for November — they will appear here as they are.
Luke Ramey
Entrepreneurship Coordinator, The Biz Foundry
All three morning sessions
- TBD
To be confirmed
Financial basics for contractors
- TBD
To be confirmed
Hiring good help
- TBD
To be confirmed
Licensing and certifications
Dates
Saturday, November 14
2026 · 9:00am – 3:00pm
Saturday, January 16
2027 · 9:00am – 3:00pm
Saturday, March 13
2027 · 9:00am – 3:00pm
All three at the Livingston-Overton County Chamber of Commerce, 222 E Main St, Livingston, TN 38570. Registration for each opens closer to the day, and the last one filled — so if a date suits you, plan for it now.
Cannot make a date?
The coaching is free and runs all year, and the same ground gets covered one-to-one. Plenty of trades come that way first and turn up to a bootcamp later.